A new Brussels study highlights the pace at which EU countries are ageing. A more informed public debate is overdue

Europe is ageing at pace as birthrates fall and people live longer. A new report by the European Commission, published this month, notes that 2012 marked the first year in which fewer people were born in EU countries than people died in them. By the middle of this century, nearly one in three EU residents will be 65 or older. The numbers of those over 80 will almost triple from 6% to 15%. The old continent is getting visibly greyer.

The transition to a “longevity society”, as the report’s authors describe it, is something to be celebrated. Many people are enjoying healthier, richer lives for longer, and redefining the meaning and possibilities of old age. But the statistics and direction of travel also point to immense social challenges, with implications for the way we work, intergenerational fairness and the future funding of care. Sadly, amid fraught and at times toxic debates about immigration and the cost of welfare, Europe’s politics is struggling to meet the moment.

Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.

Continue reading...

Actor best known for the 1960s box-office smash Casino Royale

Joanna Pettet, who has died aged 83, was a British-born, Canadian-raised actor who found fame in the 1960s after just a handful of films, including the James Bond spoof Casino Royale.

The 1967 film drew lukewarm reviews for its parody of the “official” 007 movies and suffered from a production history that included five directors, but it became a box-office smash with expectant audiences. In it Pettet played Mata Bond, the illegitimate daughter of Mata Hari and the retired Sir James Bond (acted by David Niven, one of multiple 007s featured). She is seen performing an exotic dance in a Buddhist temple, where Niven signs her up as a spy. “Do I get an exploding briefcase and a secret transmitter?” asks Pettet, who described the role as “campy”.

Continue reading...

The Pentagon head proposed a 44% increase – to second world war levels – while ‘woke’ programs are gutted

• US politics live – latest updates

When the ‘“department of government efficiency” was raging unchecked through the federal government in February 2025, the US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, ordered his subordinates to find cuts of 8% a year for the next five years, theoretically trimming a total of $340m from the Pentagon budget.

The disclosure briefly sent Palantir and defense stocks tanking – though soon the plan evaporated, as if it never existed.

Continue reading...

Escalation would follow oil passing $100 a barrel again and Houthi strikes on Saudi tankers in the Red Sea

The US president, Donald Trump, has said he is close to deciding whether to launch “a massive” attack” against Iran, on a scale larger than strikes already witnessed during the months-long conflict with Tehran.

Speaking to the Axios news site Trump said: “I am considering a massive attack. Bigger than ever before. I am close to making a decision. We are all set for it.”

Continue reading...

• Richard Carapaz roars clear of breakaway to win stage 18

• McNulty abandons, Wellens and Vermeersch struggle

Richard Carapaz won stage 18 of the Tour de France after a breakaway group of six riders duelled their way to the winter sports station at Orcières-Merlette, but uncertainty surrounds the health of race leader Tadej Pogacar’s UAE Emirates XRG team, which has been swept by a virus since Monday’s rest day.

After Adam Yates’s stage-long calvary on the road to Voiron, Pogacar’s team was further weakened by the abandonment of his American colleague, Brandon McNulty, who quit the Tour with 21km of Thursday’s stage remaining.

Continue reading...

Continue reading...

Trump officials say they will announce next phase of US trade policy as 10% global tariffs are due to expire on Friday

Donald Trump’s administration will unveil the latest stage of his aggressive trade policy on Thursday, the White House has said, amid reports the US president is preparing a fresh wave of sweeping tariffs.

Trump’s tariffs policy suffered a damaging blow in February when the US supreme court ruled that many of those tariffs were illegal. While the US replaced those tariffs with a 10% tariff regime on much of the world, these are due to expire on Friday.

Continue reading...

Why are American ambulances so expensive? In part because Medicare pays only a fraction of the actual cost of an ambulance ride and the uninsured often don’t pay at all, so the privately insured get bills of $13,000 for a $2600 ride.

Weer voor Rotterdam ☁️ - 23-07-2026 19:15 CEST

In één oogopslag:
• 19.8°C · Bewolkt ☁️ | Min 16.7°C / Max 20.6°C | Kans op neerslag 8%

Verwachting voor vandaag:
• Min 16.7°C, Max 20.6°C (Lichte motregen) 🌦️, Neerslag 0.3 mm, Kans op neerslag 8%, 🧭 1021.3 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/24h, Windsnelheid: 17.3 km/u (4.8 m/s), richting: ↘ 327°

Uurlijkse voorspelling voor de komende 12 uur:

• 20:00: 19.4°C (Bewolkt) ☁️, 🧭 1021.0 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 12.2 km/u (3.4 m/s), richting: ↘ 335°
• 21:00: 18.8°C (Licht bewolkt) 🌤️, 🧭 1021.2 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 11.9 km/u (3.3 m/s), richting: ↓ 351°
• 22:00: 18.1°C (Helder) 🌕, 🧭 1021.3 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 10.1 km/u (2.8 m/s), richting: ↓ 352°
• 23:00: 17.7°C (Helder) 🌕, 🧭 1021.6 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 6.8 km/u (1.9 m/s), richting: ↓ 339°
• 00:00: 17.7°C (Bewolkt) ☁️, 🧭 1021.8 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 6.1 km/u (1.7 m/s), richting: ↓ 350°
• 01:00: 17.8°C (Bewolkt) ☁️, 🧭 1021.8 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 4.7 km/u (1.3 m/s), richting: ↘ 335°
• 02:00: 17.8°C (Bewolkt) ☁️, 🧭 1021.6 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 5.4 km/u (1.5 m/s), richting: ↘ 303°
• 03:00: 17.9°C (Bewolkt) ☁️, 🧭 1021.1 hPa ↘️ -0.5 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 6.1 km/u (1.7 m/s), richting: → 281°
• 04:00: 17.9°C (Bewolkt) ☁️, 🧭 1020.9 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 5.8 km/u (1.6 m/s), richting: ↘ 308°
• 05:00: 17.8°C (Bewolkt) ☁️, 🧭 1020.6 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 5.8 km/u (1.6 m/s), richting: ↘ 300°
• 06:00: 17.9°C (Bewolkt) ☁️, 🧭 1020.3 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 6.5 km/u (1.8 m/s), richting: → 280°
• 07:00: 17.9°C (Bewolkt) ☁️, 🧭 1020.1 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 6.1 km/u (1.7 m/s), richting: → 257°

Voorspelling voor de komende dagen:

• vrijdag 24 juli: Min 17.8°C, Max 24.6°C (Bewolkt) ☁️, Kans op neerslag 1%, 🧭 1018.1 hPa ↘️ -3.2 hPa/24h, Windsnelheid: 8.3 km/u (2.3 m/s), richting: → 271°
• zaterdag 25 juli: Min 19.6°C, Max 26.2°C (Bewolkt) ☁️, Kans op neerslag 3%, 🧭 1008.1 hPa ↘️ -10.0 hPa/24h, Windsnelheid: 16.2 km/u (4.5 m/s), richting: → 248°
• zondag 26 juli: Min 17.0°C, Max 21.0°C (Lichte buien) 🌧️, Neerslag 9.1 mm, Kans op neerslag 39%, 🧭 1004.2 hPa ↘️ -3.9 hPa/24h, Windsnelheid: 15.4 km/u (4.3 m/s), richting: → 274°
• maandag 27 juli: Min 15.8°C, Max 21.6°C (Lichte motregen) 🌦️, Neerslag 0.3 mm, Kans op neerslag 22%, 🧭 1015.2 hPa ↗️ +11.0 hPa/24h, Windsnelheid: 10.7 km/u (3.0 m/s), richting: ↘ 332°
• dinsdag 28 juli: Min 15.4°C, Max 26.2°C (Gedeeltelijk bewolkt) ⛅, 🧭 1020.8 hPa ↗️ +5.6 hPa/24h, Windsnelheid: 7.8 km/u (2.2 m/s), richting: ↑ 170°
• woensdag 29 juli: Min 18.5°C, Max 29.8°C (Zonnig) ☀️, Kans op neerslag 3%, 🧭 1015.9 hPa ↘️ -4.9 hPa/24h, Windsnelheid: 8.4 km/u (2.3 m/s), richting: ↖ 122°

Details:
• 🌡️ Huidige temperatuur (om 19:15): 19.8°C (Bewolkt)
• 🤚 Gevoelstemperatuur: 18.5°C (-1.3°C)
• 💨 Windsnelheid: 13.0 km/u (3.6 m/s), richting: ↘ 331°
• 🌬️ Windstoten: 27.7 km/h (7.7 m/s)
• 💧 Luchtvochtigheid: 66%
• 🧭 Luchtdruk: 1021.0 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/3h
• 👁️ Zichtbaarheid: 22.1 km
• ☀️ UV-index: 1.3
• 🌅 Zonsopgang: 05:51 · 🌇 Zonsondergang: 21:45

Luchtkwaliteit:
• AQI: 31 🟢 (Goed)
• PM2.5: 4.3 μg/m³
• PM10: 9.5 μg/m³

Gegevens geleverd door Open-Meteo

#Rotterdam #Meteo #MeteoBot #MeteoNetherlands #OpenMeteo #FediMeteo

Fernando Alonso has made clear that “no package in the world” will make up for the deficit Aston Martin faced to the cars ahead last time out in Belgium, but hopes their long-awaited upgrades can put the team on a “good path”.

Depeche Mode

An anonymous reader quotes a report from CBC News: It's rare that cancerous tumors can spread from one individual to another. But a genetic study suggests that's what's happening with melanoma tumors among catfish in Quebec and the northeastern U.S. The discovery represents the first known transmissible cancer in fish and one of very few transmissible cancers ever found, reported the study published in the journal Nature on Wednesday.

Julie Dragon, co-leader of the new study, noted that only three other transmissible cancers have ever been identified so far -- in Tasmanian devils, dogs and shellfish. "These conditions are incredibly rare in nature," she said. "So something has to be happening to allow this to happen." Anglers in Lake Memphremagog, which spans the border between Quebec and Vermont, first reported catching brown bullhead catfish with strange black spots and lumps in 2012. They turned out to be melanoma skin cancer tumors. (Humans can also get this kind of cancer.) Now, about a third of the brown bullheads living in the lake have them.

It's not clear how sick the fish become. In some cases, the cancer spreads to other organs, such as the brain or liver. But many fish with lesions seem relatively healthy and some older fish even have them, suggesting they can live with the disease for a time. Because of the sudden appearance of the black lesions in Lake Memphremagog the year after a huge flood caused by post-tropical storm Irene, locals worried they were caused by carcinogens washed into the lake by floodwaters. Tests for carcinogens haven't been conclusive, although a study published in May found higher concentrations of seven metals, including zinc and the carcinogen arsenic, in the skin of fish with the tumors. Researchers suspect the tumors may spread among adult fish during spawning, when crowded fish rub against one another and may be punctured by their spines.

"They... swim all over each other and we think it's possible that they poke each other and cells can get into other fish that way," Dragon said, though transmission has not yet been demonstrated.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Festival Kwaku in Amsterdam Zuidoost begon als voetbaltoernooi, maar groeide uit tot een begrip met jaarlijks tussen de 120.000 en 150.000 bezoekers, verspreid over vier weekenden. Volgens de organisatie is het in de huidige opzet te duur.

Thomas Hawk posted a photo:

Thomas Hawk posted a photo:

Thomas Hawk posted a photo:

Thomas Hawk posted a photo:

date stamped on slide February 1962

Thomas Hawk posted a photo:

Social

Je kunt niet om het apennieuws heen laatste tijd. Eerst een nieuwe aap ontdekt, en nu dit weer. Maar liefst een MAAND lang voerde een ontsnapte, vierjarige kuifmangabeys een schrikbewind van absolute ontspanning, onschuld en gemoedelijkheid. En nu is dat allemaal voorbij. "De aap die eind juni ontsnapte uit Safaripark Beekse Bergen, is woensdagmiddag veilig teruggevonden. Dat meldt het park donderdagochtend. (...) Het vierjarige mannetje werd gevonden in een vangkooi die was geplaatst als onderdeel van de zoekactie." Het was overigens echt een enorme artiest, deze kuifkoning. "De kuifmangabeys leven in Beekse Bergen op een eiland. Er wordt vermoed dat het dier de gracht over zwom_, terwijl dat volgens de woordvoerster_ eigenlijk niet voor mogelijk werd gehouden." Zelfs onze apen ademenen de Faustische geest en u bent pessimistisch?

Ook dat nog in Dierennieuws

Social